The Detroit Red Wings used the first of their four third-round NHL draft picks Saturday to select Finnish defenseman Kasper Kotkansalo of the USHL's Sioux Falls Stampede.
They chose him with the 71st overall pick in the draft.
Kotkansalo was the second straight defenseman the Red Wings selected. They took Swedish defenseman Gustav Lindstrom No. 38 overall in the second round.
NHL Draft 17: Detroit Red Wings select defenseman Gustav Lindstrom in second round
Right-handed shot had nine points in 48 games for Swedish club.
The 6-foot-2, 196-pound Kotkansalo played for Finland's U18 World Championship gold medal team in 2016, picking up four assists and a plus-5 rating in six games.